A Montessori Home Tour: Pamela of Totally Montessori

You can see the shelf, and also the pull up bar and mirror we added to encourage standing and walking. There are other commercially made ones available, this diy set up was $15 though.

This week we are getting to peek into the home of Pamela of Instagram account Totally Montessori (@totallymontessori). She was once a Montessori child and is now a Montessori guide and parent of two children. I can personally connect to her interview as I can see how the Montessori experience as a child has stayed with her and positively influenced her career and parenting. Reading her answers and looking at her home, it is apparent how highly she values the prepared environment. The calmness, simplicity and natural light in her photos is what I find appealing. Pamela has very practical advice for parents interested in also having a Montessori Home. I also think she deserves a medal for making all of the Montessori baby mobiles herself...they look beautiful! I hope you enjoy the interview!

Tell me about yourself...

Hello! My name is Pamela, I am married to William and we have two precious children, Kate (2.5) and Michael (4 months). I enjoy running, sewing, reading, and perusing Instagram for new materials to make for my children or for my Montessori classroom.

How old are your children?

Kate is 2.5 and Michael is 4 months.

A view of the whole room, you can see the low artwork and how the shelf is visible from the movement area to give our non-mobile infant incentive to move towards it. Our daughter slept in a Moses basket until we transferred her to the floor bed full time at 6 weeks old. Our son took longer to transition because he had reflux, and slept in his rock and play until 3 months. The mirror helps coordinate body movements and gives more perspective of what the room looks like.

What is your experience with Montessori and has the philosophy influenced your parenting at all?

I am a Montessori guide for 3-6 year olds, credentialed through AMS. Almost more importantly, I was a Montessori child with a remarkable teacher who truly embodied the spirit of Dr. Montessori. I remember how wonderful it felt to just be with her and to be free to make discoveries in the classroom she had so carefully designed for us. It makes me very sensitive to the language I use with young children, and I try to take special care to only put things that I love into my classroom because my memories of that time are so vivid.

When my husband and I decided to start a family I knew I wanted them to grow up with Montessori and decided to become a credentialed teacher. I thought it would improve my parenting, and it has paid off more than I expected! I know it has shaped the way I talk to my children, no baby talk, respectful, kind, firm. And it gave me a “script” of sorts to fall back on when I would otherwise be at a loss for what to do.

One of the infant mobile series, the octahedrons.

How have you created a Prepared Environment in your home?

We read "Montessori From the Start", "Understanding The Human Being", referred to the blog "How We Montessori" frequently, and that is how we designed our children’s infant space. We have an activity space, a baby gym with mobiles, a mirror, a low shelf, a floor bed, and a dresser. All of the artwork is low so it is at their eye level.